VLC 2.1.0 on Win-98 -> audio is crazy!

[98Guy]

I "updated" VLC from 2.0.6 and it plays video just fine, but all audio (either within video or audio-only mp3 and flac) sound horrible. I mean bizarre. Some kind of weird frequency-shift thing going on.

Any hints as to anything I can do - like move or transplant codec or other files around from earlier versions of VLC to get the audio working again?

[98Guy]

Wow, thanks for all the help from you VLC people.

Maybe you could have told me to turn off the "Use float32 output" option under Audio - Output Modules - DirectX and Waveout?

[JSLover]

Wow, thanks for all the help from you VLC people.

...sorry, but no one uses Win98, except you (no offense). I saw this topic, didn't have a reply, so I didn't reply.

I am curious tho: how in the hell are you getting 2.1.0 to run on 98? It can't possibly just "work out of the box" can it? I'm worried about getting it to run on WinXP SP1...& you've got it running on 98!

[98Guy]

> ...sorry, but no one uses Win98, except you (no offense).

Tell that to the people that post to microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (on usenet) and the win-98 forums on msfn.org.

> I saw this topic, didn't have a reply, so I didn't reply.

There seem to be many people with AC-97 audio systems build into their motherboards (C-Media) that had problems with the float32 option being turned on by default in early versions of VLC. And they were running XP. Why is float32 turned on by default in VLC, given that it would still cause problems with that hardware?

> I am curious tho: how in the hell are you getting 2.1.0 to run on 98?
> It can't possibly just "work out of the box" can it? I'm worried about
> getting it to run on WinXP SP1...& you've got it running on 98!

KernelEx.

KernelEx is an Open Source compatibility layer with an aim to allow running Windows 2000/XP-only applications on Microsoft Windows 98 and Microsoft Windows Millennium operating systems.

http://sourceforge.net/projects/kernelex/
http://www.msfn.org/board/topic/130936-kernelex-452/

While the vast majority of people keep playing the windoze "upgrade" game, and run around like chickens with their heads cut-off fighting trojans and viruses that get on their XP and 7 systems, we win-98 users laugh at those people as win-98 was far, far less vulnerable to malware exploits, and there is basically no exploitation mechanism in current use on the web that can touch win-98 systems.

The Windoze NT line of operating systems:
The bloat and vulnerabilities went in before the name went on. Like the emperor's new clothes - woven from the finest, most expensive threads.
Micro$haft's motto: If it works, it's not complicated enough.

[JSLover]

Tell that to the people...

...OK, but in that case, why didn't you ask them? (of course, you probably did, after not getting an answer here) Let me rephrase what I said before: "There are very few people still using Win98". So even if your question is VLC-related (which makes it logical to ask here), it would be best to ask the question to the people that also have Win98 & can test/help.

KernelEx.

...yeah, I've heard about KernelEx before, but how can it allow you to run XP SP2+ only software? I haven't tested yet, but I think (& fear) that VLC 2.1.0+ is XP SP2+ only. What version of Firefox do you have on your Win98? I'm stuck on Firefox 12, with XP SP1, since I don't wanna install SP2 or SP3. Do you know of any way I can run SP2+ software on my XP SP1?...(short of installing SP2 or SP3)...I need a "KernelEx" for WinXP.

While the vast majority of people keep playing the windoze "upgrade" game...

...I agree with not doing this. I don't, in fact, like Microsoft. I do like WinXP, I just wish it wasn't soo old. Vista is bad, Win7 is worse & Win8 is just absolutely horrible. WinXP was the last "good" Windows OS...however SP2 & SP3 added "bad things", which is why I haven't done it yet. If ReactOS EVER does anything useful, it'll be great & replace my use of Windows...but I think we'll all be dead before even 1.0 comes out.

[98Guy]

> > Tell that to the people...
>
> OK, but in that case, why didn't you ask them?

For one thing, many seem to prefer other media players. But you'll note that the issue I had is not with the OS - it's with the hardware I have (Intel 845-based Soyo motherboard, socket-478 pentium, on-board AC-97 audio).

> Let me rephrase what I said before: "There are very
> few people still using Win98". So even if your question
> is VLC-related (which makes it logical to ask here), it
> would be best to ask the question to the people that
> also have Win98 & can test/help.

As I say, this issue has nothing to do with which version of Windoze you have, as can be seen here:

https://forum.videolan.org/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=48799

> > KernelEx.
>
> ..yeah, I've heard about KernelEx before, but how can
> it allow you to run XP SP2+ only software?

Because it hooks into the kernel to add handles for API functions not present in the win-98 kernel.

> I haven't tested yet, but I think (& fear) that VLC 2.1.0+
> is XP SP2+ only. What version of Firefox do you have on your
> Win98?

My default browser is Firefox 2.0.0.20 - which still renders the vast majority of websites good enough to view and interact with (I'm using Bon Echo to make this post, which is FF version 2.0.0.22pre). KernelEx allows the use of much higher versions of Firefox (at least up to 9). I also have Opera version 12, and Palemoon 3.6.32. KernelEx also allows even the most current versions of Flash to run under win-98.

> I'm stuck on Firefox 12, with XP SP1, since I don't wanna install SP2 or SP3.

SP1 is horribly vulnerable to many exploits. I can't imagine what would be so valuable with SP1 to be worth using compared to, say, a fully patched/updated XP-SP3.

> Do you know of any way I can run SP2+ software on my XP SP1?

I believe that there is something similar to KernelEx for Windows 2k (to allow 2k to run XP and higher software) but with regard to XP-SP1, I would bet that XP enthusiasts wouldn't see the value in making XP-SP1 compatible with SP-2-and-higher software because they wouldn't see the value in running SP1 over SP2/SP3.

[Lotesdelere]

VLC 2.1.0 on Win-98
Wow, thanks for all the help from you VLC people.

Sorry, but since the minimal system requirement is now XP SP2 don't expect any support for older Windows versions, even though VLC may run on those old versions using tricks, hacks and tweaks.

Do you know of any way I can run SP2+ software on my XP SP1?

http://code.google.com/p/corkami/downlo ... p&can=2&q=
Use it entirely at your own risk.